The Short History of the Long Road

Great indie film here about a girl who lives in a van with her father as they travel around as she goes in search of herself. The film has some shocks I won't reveal but I highly recommend it. I actually felt it had a similar concept to Nomadland only with a better story. The performances were really solid and it was a nice surprise to see Danny Trejo appear. At the heart of this film, it is actually a coming of age tale. But it is so much more.

Teenager Nola (Sabrina Carpenter) travels and lives off the grid in a van with her father Clint (Steven Ogg). Suddenly, her father dies and she sets off on her own. It's a struggle. She encounters religious do-gooder Marcie, garage owner Miguel (Danny Trejo), and troubled teen Blue. All the while, she dreams of finding her long absent mother Cheryl.

This is an interesting off-the-grid and coming-of-age story. It threatens to be something more intense but it never really push it to the next level. Despite the dangers of the road, she finds only people who are helpful to varying degrees. It is highlighted by a very deep performance from Sabrina Carpenter. One thing I would do is to make the van a much bigger presence. It is the center of many situations and ends up being the final talisman. This is a terrific performance from a young actress in a somewhat compelling story.

All of us have wanderlust. Whether realized via a leisurely Sunday afternoon drive, a spontaneous road trip, an exotic resort vacation or a lifestyle, we as humans are innately driven to get up, get out and migrate about at various points in our lives.

The new drama "The Short History of the Long Road" is all about this need to move. Sabrina Carpenter is wonderful here as Nola, a young woman who has known nothing but crisscrossing America in a clunky vintage van with her vagabond father. Nola is traveling a road to discovery in her young life. We watch as she learns that home is where you make it, a residence of the soul, not limited to physical location nor trappings.

And I must give heartfelt props to Writer/Director Ani Simon-Kennedy for "daring" to show Christians who are actually fully dimensional, real people, not caricatures to be exploited and belittled. This shouldn't be bold. But amidst the mentally of the modern motion picture community, it is.

God Bless you for sharing your own voice, Ms. Simon-Kennedy. And for not letting it drown in the malicious and mystifying anti-faith messaging flooding your business.

Casting Sabrina Carpenter as the lead was the perfect decision! She perfectly acts with out over acting. The film was also visually stunning. The only part I would change is adding more time so we could live in the emotions of Nala.

No spoilers. Sabrina does exceptionally well playing a young lady trying to find her way in the world after her dad dies and she's without her mom. I was impressed with the whole movie.